Utah Administrative Code
Topic - Environmental Quality
Title R311 - Environmental Response and Remediation
Rule R311-200 - Underground Storage Tanks: Definitions
Section R311-200-1 - Definitions

(a) Aboveground petroleum storage tank" or "APST" means a storage tank that is, by volume, less than 10 % buried in the ground, including the pipes connected to the storage tank and:

(b) "Actively participated" for the certification programs means that the individual applying for certification must have had operative experience for the entire project from start to finish, whether it be an installation or a removal.

(c) "Agricultural operation" means any operation on a tract of land devoted to the production of crops, animals, or fowl; fruit or vegetable products; or the production of dairy, nuts, tobacco, nursery, or floral products.

(d) "As-built drawing" for notification means a drawing to scale of newly constructed PSTs. The PSTs shall be referenced to buildings, streets, and limits of the excavation. The drawing shall show the locations of tanks, product lines, dispensers, vent lines, cathodic protection systems, and monitoring wells. Drawing size must be limited to 8-1/2" x 11" if possible, but shall in no case be larger than 11" x 17".

(e) "Backfill" means any foreign material, usually pea gravel or sand, which usually differs from the native soil and is used to support or cover the PST system.

(f) "Certificate" means a document that evidences certification.

(g) "Certification" means approval by the director or the board to engage in the activity applied for by the individual.

(h) "Certified environmental laboratory" means a laboratory certified by the Utah Department of Health and Human Services as outlined in Rule R444-14 to perform analyses according to the laboratory methods identified for PST sampling in Subsection R311-205-2(5).

(i) "Certified sampler" is the person who performs environmental media sampling for compliance with Utah PST rules.

(j) "Change-in-service" means the continued use of a PST to store a non-regulated substance.

(k) "Claimant" means any person eligible to submit requests for reimbursement of costs against the Petroleum Storage Tank Fund as determined by the director.

(l) "Community water system" means a public water system that serves at least 15 service connections used by year-round residents or regularly serves at least 25 year-round residents.

(m) "Confirmation sample" means an environmental sample taken, excluding closure samples as outlined in Section R311-205-2, during soil over-excavation or any other remedial or investigation activities conducted to determine the extent and degree of contamination.

(n) "Consultant" is a person who is a certified PST consultant according to Subsection 19-6-402(7) and Section R311-201-2.

(o) "Cost Guidelines" refers to the Cost Guidelines for Utah Underground Storage Tank Sites document, dated June 3, 2021. This document contains personnel classifications, requirements, and rates, general tasks and responsibilities for personnel, maximum allowable equipment and laboratory rates, and specific items or activities that will and will not be reimbursed by the Petroleum Storage Tank Fund.

(p) "Customary, reasonable, and legitimate expenses" means costs incurred during the investigation, abatement, and corrective actions that address a release which are normally charged according to accepted industry standards, and which must be justified in an audit as an appropriate cost. The costs must be directly related to the tasks performed.

(q) "Customary, reasonable, and legitimate work" means work for investigation, abatement, and corrective action that shall reduce contamination at a site to levels that are protective of human health and the environment. Acceptable levels may be established by risk-based analysis and considering current or probable land use as determined by the director following the criteria in Rule R311-211.

(r) "Department" means the Utah Department of Environmental Quality.

(s) "EAP" means the Environmental Assurance Program established in Section 19-6-410.5.

(t) "Eligible exempt UST" for eligibility for the Petroleum Storage Tank Fund means a tank specified in Subsection 19-6-415(1).

(u) "Environmental media sample" is a groundwater, surface water, air, or soil sample collected, using appropriate methods, for evaluating environmental contamination.

(v) "EPA" means the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

(w) "Expeditiously disposed of" means disposed of as soon as practical so as not to become a potential threat to human health or safety or the environment, whether foreseen or unforeseen as determined by the director.

(x) "Fiscal year" means a period beginning July 1 and ending June 30 of the following year.

(y) "Full installation" for the purposes of Subsection 19-6-411(2) means the installation of a PST.

(z) "Groundwater sample" is a sample of water from below the surface of the ground collected according to protocol established in Rule R311-205.

(aa) "Historic contamination" as referenced in Subsections 19-6-428(3)(c) and 19-6-428(3)(d) is petroleum contamination:

(bb) "Injury or damage from a release" means, for the purposes of Subsection 19-6-409(2)(e), any petroleum contamination that has migrated from the release onto or under a third party's property at concentrations exceeding Initial Screening Levels specified in Subsection R311-211-6(1).

(cc) "In service" means an PST that is actively storing or dispensing regulated substances.

(dd) "In use" means that an operational, inactive, or abandoned PST contains a regulated substance, sludge, dissolved fractions, or vapor which may pose a threat to the safety of human health or the environment, as determined by the director.

(ee) "Lapse" in reference to the certificate of compliance and coverage under the EAP, means to terminate automatically.

(ff) "Native soil" means any soil that is not backfill material, is naturally occurring, and is most representative of the localized subsurface lithology and geology.

(gg) "New release" as referenced in Subsections 19-6-428(3)(c) and 19-6-428(3)(d) are releases that occur on or after the start date for continuous participation in the EAP, which the director reasonably determines to have occurred due to an unusual operating condition, an apparent PST system equipment failure, a failed PST test, an overfill, or a surface spill during the time of program participation.

(hh) "No further action determination" means that the director has evaluated information provided by responsible parties or others about the site and determined that any detectable petroleum contamination from a particular release does not present a threat to public health or the environment based upon board established criteria in Title R311. If future evidence indicates contamination from that release may cause a threat, further corrective action may be required.

(ii) "Occurrence" in reference to Section R311-208-4 means a separate petroleum fuel delivery to a single tank.

(jj) "Owners and operators" means either an owner or operator, or both owner and operator.

(kk) "Over-excavation" means any soil removed in an effort to investigate or remediate in addition to the minimum amount required to remove the PST or take environmental media samples during PST closure activities as outlined in Section R311-205-2.

(ll) "Permanently closed" means PSTs that are removed from service following guidelines in 40 CFR Part 280 Subpart G incorporated by Rule R311-202.

(mm) "Petroleum storage tank fee" means the fee which funds the Petroleum Storage Tank Fund as established in Section 19-6-409.

(nn) "Petroleum Storage Tank Fund" means the Fund created by Section 19-6-409.

(oo) "Potable drinking water well" means any hole, dug, driven, drilled, or bored, that extends into the earth until it meets groundwater which supplies water for a non-community public water system, or otherwise supplies water for household use, consisting of drinking, bathing, and cooking, or other similar uses. Such a well may provide water to entities such as a single-family residence, group of residences, businesses, schools, parks, campgrounds, and other permanent or seasonal communities.

(pp) "PST" means petroleum storage tank as defined in Subsection 19-6-402(21).

(qq) "PST inspection" is the inspection required by state and applicable federal underground storage tank rules and regulations during the installation, testing, repairing, operation or maintenance, and removal of regulated PSTs.

(rr) "PST installation" means the installation of a PST, including any component that is critical to:

(ss) "PST testing" means:

(tt) "Public water system" means a system for the provision to the public of water for human consumption through pipes or, after August 5, 1998, other constructed conveyances, if such system has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves an average of at least 25 individuals daily at least 60 days out of the year. It includes any collection, treatment, storage, and distribution facilities under control of the operator of the system and used primarily in connection with the system; and, any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such control which are used primarily in connection with the system.

(uu) "Registration fee" means PST registration fee.

(vv) "Related parties" for the purposes of Section R311-207-4, means organizations or persons related to the consultant by any of the following: marriage; blood; one or more partners in common with the consultant; one or more directors or officers in common with the consultant; more than 10% common ownership direct or indirect with the consultant.

(ww) "Reportable release" means a spill, overfill, leak, discharge, leachate, or disposal of a regulated substance that results in a release to the environment.

(xx) "Rests directly on the ground" means that at least some portion of a PST situated aboveground is in direct contact with soil.

(yy) "Secondary containment"

(zz) "Site assessment" or "site check" is an evaluation of the level of contamination at a site which contains or has contained a PST.

(aaa) "Site assessment report" is a summary of relevant information describing the surface and subsurface conditions at a facility following any abatement, investigation or assessment, monitoring, remediation or corrective action activities as outlined in Rule R311-202, incorporating 40 CFR 280 Subparts E and F.

(bbb) "Site investigation" is work performed by the owner or operator, or their designee, when gathering information for reports required for Utah PST rules.

(ccc) "Site plat" for notification or reporting, refers to a drawing to scale of PSTs in reference to the facility. The scale should be dimensioned appropriately. Drawing size shall be limited to 8-1/2" x 11" if possible, but must in no case be larger than 11" x 17". The site plat should include the following: property boundaries; streets and orientation; buildings or adjacent structures surrounding the facility; present or former PSTs; extent of any excavations; location and volume of any stockpiled soil; locations, depths, and analytical results of all environmental media samples collected; locations and total depths of borings or permanent wells, or other measurement or data points; type of ground-cover; utility conduits; local land use; surface water drainage; and other relevant features.

(ddd) "Site under control" means that the site of a release has been actively addressed by the owner or operator who has taken the following measures:

(eee) "Soil" as referenced in Subsection 19-6-402(28) means natural earthen material under which there is no secondary containment.

(fff) "Soil sample" is a sample collected following the protocol established in Rule R311-205.

(ggg) "Surface water sample" is a sample of water, other than a groundwater sample, collected according to protocol established in Rule R311-205.

(iii) "Suspected release" means a release that may have occurred from a regulated PST system, for example: petroleum contamination discovered at the PST site or in the surrounding area; unusual operating conditions of the PST system; release detection methods indicating a release may have occurred; inventory control records indicating unexplained product loss; or, a spill or overfill that occurs outside secondary containment and exceeds 25 gallons.

(hhh) "Tank" is a stationary device designed to contain an accumulation of regulated substances and constructed of non-earthen materials, such as concrete, steel, or plastic, that provide structural support.

(iii) "Third-party Class B operator" is any individual who is not the facility owner or operator, or an employee of the owner or operator and who, by contract, provides the services outlined in Subsection R311-201-12(7).

(jjj) "Under-dispenser containment," for the purposes of Section R311-203-6, means containment underneath a dispenser that will prevent leaks from the dispenser or transitional components that connect the piping to the dispenser, check valves, shear valves, unburied risers or flex connectors, or other components that are beneath the dispenser, from reaching soil or groundwater.

(kkk) "UST inspector" is an individual who performs PST inspections for compliance with state and federal rules and regulations as authorized in Subsection 19-6-404(2)(c).

(lll) "UST installation" means the installation of a PST, including construction, placing into operation, building, or assembling a PST in the field. It includes any operation that is critical to the integrity of the system and to the protection of the environment, which includes:

(mmm) "UST installation permit fee" means the fee established by Subsection 19-6-411(2)(a)(ii).

(nnn) "UST installer" means an individual who engages in PST installation.

(ooo) "UST removal" means the removal or permanent closure of a PST system by taking out of service all or part of a PST system.

(ppp) "UST remover" means an individual who engages in PST tank removal.

(qqq) "UST tester" means an individual who engages in PST testing.